Soren

Chapter Twelve

Can't believe we're already at chapter twelve!

-------

She woke up to the feeling of warm breath blowing on the top of her head. Conscious of the chill in the air she pushed herself into the warm at her back, rolling over and nuzzling her nose into the body of the man behind her. It took her a couple minutes to come to full awareness and realize she was pressed up against the hard plains of James' chest, her nose trying to shove its way into the crook of his neck. They had fallen asleep where they had been in front of the fireplace, though the fire had long since died out, no longer bathing the room in its warm and delicate light. James was still fast asleep; his face having lost all the signs of worry that it had held the day before. It was fascinating how sleep could reveal a person.

Gone was any sense of danger he carried with him, in his sleep he was no longer the vicious protector, he was vulnerable just like her. She wondered what she looked like while she slept, did her dreams play out on her face, or did she look deceitfully peaceful while her mind was in turmoil. Sleep did not bring peace or refuge to Soren, rather it brought confusing and sometimes downright terrifying visions to her. Sometimes she wondered if she was being punished somehow if she had done something or angered someone that would wish such unrest upon her. The winds assured her they were harmless, that they were simply tales of pasts untold, but it did not ease the ache in her brain when she woke after a night of restless slumber.

This morning was different though, Soren's head did not ache at all, in fact, she felt better than she had in a long, long time. She couldn't help but imagine it had everything to do with the man that lay next to her. Something about his arms around her, their legs intertwined gave her a sense of calm and safety that only he could bring. He had driven the dreams away, once again saving her from her past and all that plagued her.

Lost in her thoughts she did not notice the low groan or the hazel eyes that blinked open slowly. James came to and wondered if his eyes were deceiving him, or if maybe he hadn't woken up at all, just transitioned into another blissful dream. But no. She was there, right beside him in his arms. She was exactly where she was supposed to be, and he couldn't be more happy and grateful that she had not snuck outside again. It might not be winter anymore, but it was still freezing in Colorado and he didn't think she could afford to get sick, and she would, especially considering she was only human, and she was only wearing his clothes.

He could feel the carpet beneath him, not doing anything to ease the pain in his stiff back from sleeping on the couch the night before, but he could hardly feel it. All he could see was the face of his mate so close to his own. Feel her pressed up against him, once again reminded that she needed to gain weight, and fast.

"Good morning," he murmured, not wanting to startle her away from him, he didn't know if he could bear to separate from her when he had only just woken.

"Did you sleep well?"

She nodded in response, letting her hair fall and cover half her face. He didn't like that she was trying to hide herself from him. She was his everything now, and he wanted to see her face. Pushing her hair out of her eyes, he tucked it behind her ear, letting his hand graze her cheek on its way back to its spot on his chest. His wolf was settled and practically purring as they laid there on the floor both in thought, neither he nor his canine side were immune to the calm they felt in her presence, she was their own personal ray of sunshine and they wanted to bask in it as long as possible.

Not long after James had those very thoughts did Soren move to get up. Placing both hands on his chest she pushed herself into a seated position. She was hungry but she could not make herself ask for anything, this cabin was James' territory and for her, it was unfamiliar grounds. In the woods there was only one omnipotent notion: survive or die. The forest had pushed her to be harsh and severe, to harden herself towards the things she had to do, but now that she was with James, she just felt unsure. She didn't know what was common practice here, how often did they eat, what did they do when they weren't hunting? She had so many questions she couldn't even list them all, but more importantly, she didn't know what was okay to ask and what wasn't, every time she opened her mouth, she was afraid she would offend him.